The Hammers produced a gutsy defensive performance against Chelsea, putting bodies on the line to ensure that the rampant Blues didn’t breach their defences and the nil-nil draw secured was a fair reflection of the Hammers’ outstanding effort.
West Ham’s rearguard effort can be best demonstrated through the performance of Matty Taylor. Taylor has been a favourite of Big Sam’s, and seeing his willingness to put his body on the line on Wednesday shows precisely why Allardyce is such a big fan. The EA SPORTS Player Performance Index demonstrates that he made a total of 7 blocks against Chelsea.
West Ham’s back four has been decimated by injury over the last couple of months, and Big Sam will be chuffed that centre halves James Tomkins and James Collins have stepped up their comebacks from injury. Collins was particularly instrumental on Wednesday, marshaling the defence to great effect and making a total of 20 defensive contributions (based on blocks, clearances, interceptions and tackles won). This was the third most in the league.
The Hammers may have been on the back foot for a large percentage of the game on Wednesday, but that didn’t stop Stewart Downing from showcasing his excellent wing play. He swung in 4 crosses on Wednesday, the most in the league, which took his total number of crosses this term to 27, also the most in the league. Downing is an industry best 7/1 with 888sport.com to score at any time on Saturday.
Downing may have swung in the most crosses for the Hammers, but he isn’t the player who has completed the most dribbles. Surprisingly, the EA SPORTS Player Performance Index shows that Mohamed Diame tops the table for the Hammers with 44.
Swansea ended a run of 8 Premier League games without a win with a comfortable 2-0 victory over Fulham.
Michael Laudrup will have been delighted to welcome back Jonathan De Guzman from injury against the Cottagers, as the Dutchman has become an integral part of the Swans side. De Guzman produced a telling performance on his return, completing a total of 45 passes in the opposition half. De Guzman is 22/5 with 888sport.com to score at any time on Saturday.
Swansea may have dominated possession throughout the fixture but they still needed an assured performance from their back four to snuff out any Fulham forages forward. Chico Flores produced an inspired performance at the back to ensure that all attacks were quelled, making a total of 7 interceptions – the most in the league.
First choice ‘keeper Michel Vorm has had his fair share of injury problems this term leading to Gerhard Tremmel slotting in at various points over the season. Interestingly they have made a similar number of saves, 29 and 28 respectively, despite Vorm featuring in 3 more games than his German counterpart.
Fullbacks have become a crucial part of the modern game, with their threat down the flanks a key asset in a team’s offensive play. This adaptation to the modern game is demonstrated through Angel Rangel, who shows his desire to get forward at any opportunity – most clear through the fact that he completed a total of 48 passes in the opposition half in the last round of fixtures, the third most in the league and more than any other defender.
